One Sided Love

Chapter 49

2 weeks after his sentencing I was told that 20 years was added into his sentence for another account of attempted murder.

84 years. He has no chance now. He will die in prison. They also took 3 years off his protective custody.

Both homes, in America and in the forest were sold by the government.

On top of that, he had to pay all hospital charges for both mine and Oliver's treatment. As well as a hefty sum of compensation, £75,000 for Oliver, £100,000 for me.

It's good for the future, mums dropped one job so now she's got less stress, I want to go to college and uni even though I have no idea what to study...but, it still doesn't change what happened.

I've been doing online courses for school. Because of mine and Oliver's circumstance, we've been allowed to catch up with our schooling online, complete the work missed and study, then during the end of the summer holidays we will take the exams we missed.

I still have nightmares about him. I dream that he's in the room. He taunts me, sometimes hits me, I feel the pain of each slap or punch. He climbs on top of me, about to...but I always wake up before anything happens. Mum would comfort me. I had been saying with mum because my room brought back bad memories.

The first time I slept in my own room since coming back, I woke up in the middle of the night and cried because of a nightmare where i was down in the basement. Lou had heard me. He came in my room and dragged me to his. I held him and he held me.

I'm not sure anymore who's meant to be the older sibling. It's like he knows somehow, he knows when I have flashbacks of that place, he'll come to me and just hug me.

He's 6 now, only 6. But It helps just to talk to him about anything, read, play and watch films with him.

———

"Dammit! Becks!" I shout at her once again as she pushes me into Oliver. She runs to the other side of Thomas giggling.

"I better be maid of honour at the wedding" she demands playfully smiling at me.

I hear Oliver chuckle softly as he wraps his arm around my shoulder.

I smile "no, you've been demoted to regular bridesmaid" I tell her smiling back innocently.

Her eyes widen "don't you dare! That's not fair! I helped set you two up!" She squeals.

"No, you did not. I never met you before Cas and from the second I seen her I knew I liked her, you had nothing to do with it" Oliver joins in.

She looks deeply offended "Wah! Lies! I helped you pick out that necklace on her birthday, zombie boy! The perfect gift, do I not get thanks for that?"

Necklace?

The rose necklace, the one he took off me, yanked off me, he broke it and threw it away...in his car. When he took me.

I reach up and touch my neck where it should still be. Instead, at the bottom of my palm I feel the raised scar.

It's been 9 months since it all happened, 7 months since the sentencing, I haven't seen him in 7 months but, the little things, they bring me back, bring back memories.

I don't even realise I stopped walking until Oliver calls my name.

"Casey? You good?" I look up to see them all staring at me.

"Yeah, I'm fine" I say as catch up to them with three steps.

"Cas, you're crying" I look at Ben confused and wipe my face with my hand.